Memorial Golf Tourney Carries On Flanagan Legacy

CELEBRATIONS - GOOD CAUSES

January 7, 1996

The first Chuck Flanagan Memorial Golf Tournament will give participants a chance to pay tribute to Pembroke Pines Mayor Charles "Chuck" Flanagan, who died on Jan. 20, 1995, after a lengthy battle with cancer.

Participants will also contribute to a good cause that Flanagan supported strongly - helping less fortunate people, especially children who have cancer.

"This way all his friends can get together and remember him and at the same time raise funds for his favorite charitable organization. He was very caring and involved in his community," says Gerry Witoshynsky, a Pembroke Pines resident who is chairwoman and secretary of the Broward County chapter of the Children's Cancer Caring Center.

The golf tournamant will be on Friday at Pembroke Lakes Country Club, 10500 Taft St., Pembroke Pines. The event also will include a dinner, a silent auction, a raffle and prizes, as well as sports memorabilia autographed by celebrities such as Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino.

Witoshynsky says all of the money raised will benefit the center, which provides free emotional and medical support for children who have cancer, and their families. She says the center serves about 500 chilren a year.

Witoshynsky stresses that cancer treatment is very expensive. So without help from the center, she says, many families might not have access to the best treatment for their children.

"Our purpose is to raise dollars in Broward to care for the children," Witoshynsky says. "A lot of them are indigent; they receive all the care they need [at the center)."

The Children's Cancer Caring Center, which is at Jackson Memorial Hospital, will transfer its operations to Cleveland Clinic Florida in Fort Lauderdale.

Witoshynsky says services will be offered in Fort Lauderdale later this year as soon as renovation work is completed.

Golfers and non-golfers are invited to attend the fundraiser. The tournament will begin at noon, and a buffet-style dinner and awards presentation will follow at 6 p.m.

For tickets and general information, call Witoshynsky at 581-2871, or Sam Zocco, the event's chairman, at 685-8201.